3. One of the CCNP exams
Advantages:
* Climbing "up" on the "certification ladder"
* Cheap
Disadvantages:
* More efforts required
* Triggers the CCNP timer (3 years to complete)
* (this one is specific to me) Risk of starting it too early and becoming paper CCNP as I deal with Cisco equipment on a rather basic level at the moment

So I am wondering...

Re #2: Do CCNA concentrations (particularly CCNA: Security and CCNA: Service Provider) hold any value at all? Is having "CCNA, CCNA: SP" on the resume any better than just "CCNA"?

Re #3: How unwise is it to start CCNP track at this point? I have ~5 years of experience in system administration + 2 years of tech.support prior to that, plus a degree in CS, network administration. Primary duties are on server support side of things with little exposure to advanced networking. I have not yet decided whether to focus on a particular area, and what it would be - I'm choosing between networking, virtualization, and security...

Is the CCNP the route you want to take you should probably research the requirements and see if that is the route._________________MCP# 1031105
MCSE Windows 2003
MCSA Windows 2003
MCP Windows NT 4.0 Workstation
MCTS: 70-640
MCTS: 70-642
MCTS: 70-643

SP is nice to have if you work with the ONS's but if you aren't working for a service provider then..... better off with voice or security
And at the end of the day it is your decision.... and having a specialization on CCNA is still more then CCNA._________________Koen
CCSI #30501 CCNP CCIP CCVP CCSP CCDP Cisco Advanced Wireless LAN Field Specialist Cisco Unity Design Specialist Cisco IP Telephony Design Specialist JNCIS-ES JNCIA-ER JNCIA-EX MCSE MCSA:Messaging

SP is nice to have if you work with the ONS's but if you aren't working for a service provider then..... better off with voice or security
And at the end of the day it is your decision.... and having a specialization on CCNA is still more then CCNA.

Thanks, that's the kind of comment I wanted to hear... So according to you, there is some recognition of specializations out there on the job market, that's good to know

It would make sense to follow a path that can either be paid for by your current employer. If you currently use your CCNA in your job and you plan on going forward with networking as a career, then I would go CCNP and get the boss to pay. If you are using the CCNA as a way to round out your knowledge in systems administration or engineering (in other words, you work mainly with servers), then I would just recert the CCNA with a current CCNA. I would not do voice or security unless either your current role uses it or you really want to simply learn for learning's sake. And there is nothing wrong with that.

What are you doing currently?
...
If you are using the CCNA as a way to round out your knowledge in systems administration or engineering (in other words, you work mainly with servers)...

This is exactly my case. I support the company's computer system from A to Z, including servers and network. The network structure is very simple and little reconfiguration is ever needed for the 2-3 Cisco routers, so my job is mostly focused on taking care of the 30-40 VMware/Windows/Citrix/Linux servers and other sysadmin stuff (DNS, mail routing, traffic monitoring)...

And I kind of already settled on not pursuing CCNP at this point. Next spring or summer (CCNA is due for recerting in the fall '11) I am planning to go for CCNA:Security.